Best NFL Futures Bets Entering 2023 Season

Best NFL Futures Bets Entering 2023 Season

It has been six long, grueling months without football. It’s also six months without betting on the sport as well. But last night, we got to scratch that itch with the Hall of Fame game. We all enjoy placing bets on a weekly basis, but what about bets before the season? I am normally not a huge futures guy, but I have cooked up a list of 10 NFL futures bets I absolutely love, and will be placing/have already placed before the season begins.

*All lines from DraftKings SportsBook from Friday, August 4th*

Chris Olave Over 5.5 Receiving Touchdowns (+100)

Garrett Wilson may have grabbed the spotlight last season, but Chris Olave, for my money, was the best rookie receiver last season. His receiving touchdown line set at 5.5 seems criminal, as New Orleans made a substantial upgrade at the Quarterback position by adding Derek Carr. Olave finished with four touchdowns last season with clowns at the position, imagine the damage he could do with an actual, decent guy throwing him the ball. Hammer the over.

James Cook Over 3.5 Rushing Touchdowns (+105)

James Cook is absolutely crushing training camp, and will likely be rewarded with a ton of carries in the regular season. Buffalo may not be a huge rushing offense from the running back position, but if they force-feed Cook the ball while up to take pressure off Josh Allen, this will result in Cook getting well over 3.5 touchdowns on the ground. Cook had two on just 89 total carries last year, you don’t think he can get two more over another 200+ carries? Cash money.

Jordan Love Under 21.5 Touchdowns (-110)

I have zero faith whatsoever in Jordan Love. There’s a reason why the oddsmakers have Bryce Young with a bigger total than Love because everyone knows this guy stinks. His receiver believes he can be Aaron Rodgers, and that simply couldn’t be further from the truth. Green Bay has no weapons, Love has shown next to nothing, how can anyone expect the over to cash here?

Dak Prescott Over 12.5 Interceptions (+105)

The training camp videos coming out of Dallas have not been kind to Dak Prescott. Prescott threw 15 INTs in 11 games last season, and somehow he is supposed to throw less in more games? Come on now. He led the league in this stat and didn’t play a full season, if he manages to play all 17 games he realistically could be up towards 20 if we are being honest. This one will never be in doubt.

T.J. Watt Over 13.75 Sacks (+100)

The last of my NFL Futures bets for the 2023 season for players takes us to Pittsburgh and T.J. Watt. Watt was marred with injuries last season, only playing in 10 games and finishing with five and a half sacks on the year. In his last fully healthy season, he almost broke the all-time sack record, so I am more banking on health here than anything. Watt has three seasons of over 13.75 sacks, and I believe this can make it four.

Carolina Panthers Over 7.5 Wins (-120)

The longest odds on my NFL Futures bets article is arguably one that I am most confident in. The Carolina Panthers finished 7-10 last season, and is it not unreasonable to believe they can add one more win to that total? This Panthers team has a great defense that should take some of the pressure off Bryce Young by keeping the score low. The division as a whole is not great, which means it is wide open for anyone to win it. I would really consider Carolina +400 to win the division as well.

Under 7.5 Wins Chicago Bears (+110)

Trey said it best in his Don’t Eat The Cheese piece on Quarterbacks that people are foolishly buying into the Justin Fields hype. This is not a good football team, that is just the short of it. No great weapons, the offensive line is not good, and they have the worst front seven in football, even after the Yannick Ngakoue signing. Could this team be good in a few years? Absolutely they can. But it is foolish to buy in right now. Chicago will be picking at the top of the 2024 NFL Draft, as they will finish below 7.5 wins in 2023.

Detroit Lions To Win NFC North (+140)

My last two NFL Futures bets are set in stone, and I really went back and forth through three options I wanted to list. I love Seattle over 9.5 wins at +125, Seahawks to win NFC West at +195 and Dallas Cowboys to miss playoffs at +195 but I am going to ride with the Detroit Lions to win the NFC North at +140. I hopped on the Lions bandwagon last season and I will continue to into this season. Great additions to the secondary this offseason really spearhead my belief they will win the NFC North for the first time since 1993.

Doug Peterson to win Coach of the Year (+2200)

My last two bets here are intertwined, and you will see that shortly. The Jaguars won the AFC South last year and pulled off one of the greatest comebacks in NFL history to beat the Chargers in the AFC Wild Card. This Jaguars team is going to be fantastic this year, which should propel Doug Peterson into the conversation of best coaches in the league. It also helps that he has one of the best, young signal callers in the NFL. Speaking of…

MVP — Trevor Lawrence (+1500)

I already have my ticket for Trevor Lawrence to win the 2023 NFL MVP. The returning Calvin Ridley, an improving offensive line and a more than solid run game will make life easy for Lawrence as he looks to push for 5,000 yards this season. I am all in on this Jacksonville Jaguars team in 2023, as I believe they could very well find themselves in the AFC Championship game. This may qualify more as a bold prediction than anything, as someone like Josh Allen or Jalen Hurts could better bet, but for my money, there is no better value out right now when betting awards than Lawrence to win MVP.

Linktree!